Blind bolt



Feb. 10, 1948.

J. DE SWART BLIND BOLT Filed June 20, 1944 Patented Feb. 10, 1948 2,435,876 BLIND pour Jan de Swart, Los Angeles. Calif" assignonby mesne assignments, to Shellmar Products Corporation, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Application June 20,1944, Serial No. 541,169 f 1 Claim. (Cl. 852.4)

This invention relates to a bolt, and refers particularly to a bolt which is intended to be inserted from one side of an opening as distinguished from the general practice in which the bolt may be inserted from one side of an opening and the nut attached from the opposite side.

It is the general object of the present invention to provide a bolt and nut which may be inserted into an opening from one side only and manipulated from that side to bolt two or more walls together,

Another object of the present invention is to provide a bolt and nut device with plastic means adapted to undergo expansion at the rear end of the combination in bolting operations, and providing a lock-nut action.

The novel blind bolt and nut device of the present invention, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be more fully understood from the following description of the preferred example of the invention. The description is given in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is an elevation in section, showing the device installed in an opening". in two plates to be bolted together, but before the bolting operation.

Fig. 2 is a similar view, showing the final position of the bolt.

Fig. 3 is a top view of the bolt and nut combination.

Fig. 4 is an elevation of the plastic sleeve of the unit before the expanding or bolting operation.

Fig. 5 is a top view of the sleeve shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a bottom view.

Fig. 7 is an elevation in section of a modified form of the device.

Fig. 8 is an elevation in section of a further modified form of the device.

Referring to the drawings, the device of the present invention comprises a bolt 2 which may be of any usual or preferred construction and is indicated as having a threaded shank 3 and head 4 with ker'fs 5 for the reception of a screw driver or other turning device. The bolt may be constructed of any preferred form of metal, in accordance with the usual practice. Inclos- .ing the bolt 2 is the plastic sleeve 6. The outer surface of the sleeve 6 is generally cylindrical, but at the lower end of the sleeve, as viewed in the drawings, or the end that engages the head 4 of the metal bolt member, the sleeve 8 is provided with a number of projecting ribs 1, the purpose of which is to cut into the wall, or

2 wedge into the walls, of the bore through which the device is to be installed.

Thus, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2, I have shown the device as being installed in an opening in two plates 8 and 9 which are to be bolted together by the device of the present invention. The ribs 1 on the sleeveare in position to bite into the plate 8 and thereby lock the sleeve 6 against rotation relative to the plate.

The upper end of the sleeve, as shown in the drawing, is provided with a plurality of slots l0 dividing the upper portion of the sleeve into a plurality of fingers or tongues II, which are intended to be bent outwardly in bolting operations, as hereafter described. The upper end of the sleeve 6 is also provided with an expanding or tapered bore l2.

To the free end of the bolt 2 there is threaded a nut M, the lower face of which, as viewed in Figure 1, is tapered as indicated at [5 substantially in accordance with the taper l2 on the sleeve 6. The maximum diameter of the nut it is made substantially the same as the normal diameter of the unexpanded sleeve 6. so that the nut i4 is equally expandable for passing through the plates 8 and 9 as between the sleeve 6.

In using the device of the present invention, it will be readily seen that any opening of the plates 8 and 9 which passes the sleeve 6, will also pass the nut ll so that the bolt and nut combination can be utilized as a blind'device to be inserted from one side only. On insertion of the device the ribs I on the sleeve bite into the walls of the plate 8 sufllcient to lock the sleeve from rotation. When the metal bolt 2 is turned in the proper direction, the frictional engagement between tapered surfaces l2 and i5 lock the nut H from rotating with the result that it is wedged longitudinally toward the head 2, expanding the fingers Ii of the plastic sleeve 6, when the bolt nut finally arrives in the position shown in Fig, 2, in which the outwardly expanding fingers ll of the sleeve 6, under pressure of the nut l4, adequately locks plates 8 and, 9 together.

Now referring to Fig. 7 of thedrawings, I have shown a form of the invention in which, in place of the bolt 2 of Figs. 1 to 6 inclusive, the device includes a wood screw IQ of any usual or preferred form. The wood screw [6 is shown as having a kerf II for the reception of a screwdriver and having a pointed screw end portion Ill. The wood screw it extends through the bore of a plastic sleeve I! which has a head 20 indicated as having a countersunk portion for receiving the head of the wood screw I. The plastic sleeve I9 is in a manner similar to that oi sleeve 6 provided with a plurality of slots 2| dividing the upper portion oi the sleeve l9 into a plurality of fingers or tongues 22 which are intended to be bent outwardly in the bolting operations as hereafter described. The upper end of the sleeve [9 is also provided with an expanding or tapering bore so that the thickness of the fingers decrease towards their ends.

The pointed screw [8 is inserted into a nut 23 which may be formed of plastic material. This nut 23 is provided with tapering surfaces 24 and with shoulders 25 against which the ends oi. the fingers 22 bear in the initial position of the device. I

In the use of the form of the invention shown in Fig. 7, it will be apparent that the device may I ""Fig. 2.

Now referring to Fig. 8 of the drawings, I have shown a somewhat modified form of the invention in which the wood screw it may be the same as that shown in Fig. 7 and therefore similarly numbered. A plastic sleeve 26 is employed and in this plastic sleeve the functions performed by the nut 23 and the fingers 22 of the form shown in Fig. 7 are combined in the plastic sleeve. For this purpose the upper end of the plastic sleeve is slotted, as indicated at 21, to form fingers 28, the inner surfaces of which contract towards the upper end of the plastic sleeve 26 and therefore are adapted to be wedged outwardly on the in-- sertion of the pointed end of the wood screw l8.

While the particular form or the device herein described is well adapted to carry out the objects 4 of the present invention, various modifications and changes may be made, and this invention is of the scopeset forth in the appended claim.

I claim:

A blind fastening device comprising a sleeve of deformable plastic material, a metal screw having a self-tapping tapered threaded end portion adapted to be inserted through said sleeve, said sleeve having a slotted inner and extension provided with an outwardly tapering internal bore and a deformable plastic nut having an inwardly tapered portion extending into the tapered internal bore of. said end extension, said nut means adapted to receive the threaded end portion of said metal screw and to be deformed by rotation of said metal screw to axially compress and radially expand said sleeve.

JAN n: SWAR'I.

REFERENCES CITED The, following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 228,816 Huff June 15, 1880 462,601 Thinnes June 25, 1929 976,096 Pansch Nov, 15, 1910 1,122,280 Kempshall Dec. 29, 1914 1,158,633 Carpenter Nov. 2, 1915 1,469,667 Pleister Oct. 2, 1923 1,640,433 4 Weldon Aug. 30, 1927 1,718,438 Ross June 25, 1929 r 1,738,609 Pivouski Dec. 10, 1929 1,814,965 Rosenberg July 14, 1931 1,927,271 Noelting Sept. 19, 1933 1,935,336 Sluyter Nov. 14, 1933 2,150,080 Rawlings Mar. 7, 1939 2,296,470 Keehn Sept. 22, 1942 2,333,277 Swank Nov. 2, 1943 2,319,376 Wallace May 18, 1943 2,365,372

Allen Dec. 19, 1944 

